A former high-ranking San Jose fire official is accusing the city and Chief Robert Sapien of unlawful termination, discrimination and retaliation, alleging it as part of a calculated effort to oust him from his job weeks before becoming eligible for retirement benefits.
Assistant Chief James Williams, 57, filed a government claim against the city — the first step before he can officially file a lawsuit — with his attorney indicating that if a resolution is not reached on lost wages, retirement benefits, emotional distress, and punitive damages, litigation will follow.
“The city of San Jose and its leadership made a deliberate decision to end the career of a highly qualified and respected Black fire executive just weeks before his retirement eligibility,” said attorney Jamon Hicks of Los Angeles-based Douglas / Hicks Law. “This case is about accountability and about ensuring that public servants who dedicate their lives to protecting our communities are treated with the dignity and fairness they’ve earned.”
City officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Williams lost his job on July 27, more than four years after joining the department and eight weeks before he would have been eligible for retirement benefits.
Williams has spent the vast majority of his 38-year career in the Bay Area, beginning with his hiring as a firefighter by the Menlo Park Fire District in 1987, followed by his move to the Oakland Fire Department in 1990 where he was hired to a similar position.
After spending decades in the East Bay rising the ranks from firefighter to deputy chief, Williams became the first Black chief of the Oxnard Fire Department. However, his tenure lasted only a few years, with Williams receiving a $60,000 settlement as part of a separation agreement that called for him to drop all legal claims, according to reporting from the Ventura County Star.
Williams served as the fire marshal in Sonoma County before joining the San Jose Fire Department in 2021.
In the claim sent to the city, Williams alleged active efforts to sideline him through the removal of his duties, unfair performance reviews and excluding him from decision-making — actions which his attorneys surmised were an effort to force his resignation.
Williams’ attorneys also have suggested that he was subject to age-based discrimination because he was referred to as a “dinosaur” and repeatedly asked about his plans to retire.
The complaint added that Williams was told by Sapien that the city was “going in another direction” after he requested medical leave and had attempted to “strengthen ties” with the firefighters’ union, which allegedly drew the disapproval of the fire chief.
“Essentially, they were trying to force him out and when he didn’t just walk away, then he was terminated,” Hicks said.
The complaint stated that Williams’ termination resulted in the loss of millions in lifetime income and damage to his professional reputation, as well as prospective public service leadership career opportunities.
In an interview with The Mercury News, Hicks advised Williams not to comment on his experience at the San Jose Fire Department or any topics that could come up in a deposition.
When asked about Williams’ labor rights as an assistant chief, Hicks responded that regardless of whether his employment is at the will of the chief or considered an at-will position, the labor code and government code prohibit discrimination against protected classes, including individuals with disabilities.
The Government Claims Act gives San Jose 45 days to resolve the complaint before Williams can take civil action.
“We are always open to talking to the city about any potential resolution and seeing what the offer would be so long as that offer is fair and it gives consideration for Chief Williams’ service as a public servant and gives consideration to how this retirement would look in the future,” Hicks said.